We can fix this...

I can't.

Was there someone else? Had he hurt her so much by disappearing for so long that she had sworn him off entirely? He didn't know, but he didn't – he couldn't – blame her. He couldn't. That would be unfair.

Still, the thought was enough to make his mouth go dry and his head hurt. He felt a little bit like crying, but if he had cried every time he had felt like it, he would have died of dehydration a long time ago. Life had been...rough for the past few years, and he was tougher because of it. Or so he'd assumed. But he felt now like the world was a slightly darker place.

He put the letters back into his pocket. He didn't want to look at them any longer. His sole piece of motivation for the past nine months, and he couldn't bear to look at them anymore.

He set his jaw and took a deep breath. “Okay,” he said, quiet and simple, like she hadn't just wrecked his entire world. “I understand.”

Instead of answering, he reached into his pocket. He always kept her last letter with him, to keep him going when he needed a pick-me-up (and boy, had he needed those lately). He pulled out the paper, along with her note: I want to spend more time with you. Both the papers were folded, the crease along the folds worn with how many times he had opened them up and read them, and the writing faded on each one.

There were also a few droplets of blood on them now.

“Aw, man,” he groaned, seeing the damage. “I can't believe I bled on them. These two things kept me going for so long.”

He sighed, unfolding them again so she could see what they were. “I mean – you know Shinra's after me, right? So me and Cloud, we came all this way back here together, and some nights, well, you saw him. He's actually doing better than he was earlier. So some nights, I would just stare at this stuff and think about you. Uhh – not in a creepy way or anything! Just in a way like...holding onto a really good thing that happened to me.

“I can’t.” she finally snapped back, the words coming out like an exhale. “... I told you…” she wished that she could be clearer, that she didn’t have this urge to be vague to spare his feelings. She had been so in love with him…

“You think this is some kind of sleepover?” he asked. They were a week from Midgar at the pace that the Soldier was planning to set – not so fast as to wear the girl down, but fast enough that they'd be on the bike for quite a distance each day. His route went through the mountains, out of the way of most other vehicles, and missing the swamps north of Mithral Mines. He didn't care to run into people if he could help it.

A fire would have been nice, but if they were being tracked, then he couldn't risk it. He went into the heavy pack he had kept on the back of the bike and pulled out two MREs. Normal army fare, not great in quality, but they got the job done.

“The tent's for you. I'll sleep out here.” She didn't need to know that he wouldn't be doing much in the way of sleeping, although a week was pushing it. He'd sleep in snatches here and there when the night was quiet. Not tonight. They were too close to society for that.

He tossed her one of the MREs. “Eat this,” he said shortly. “It doesn't taste good, but it'll keep you going.”

her voice drifted as she looked over the tent. she nursed her wrists, she had been so roughly handled that her body was starting to fill the aches of riding on her stomach and having her arms pulled back. the remaining bangles jingled, the ones with materia long discarded. she really liked those, but the decorative ones would suffice or what was left of them. enough that she made noises when she swayed her arms. the tent’s soloness reminded her how unused to sleeping alone she had become. no Tifa in the bed next or cloud and barret down the hall… “I don’t bite.” she pulled at the tent with inquisitive fingers. she hm’d and haw’d over it. sounds synonymous with her inspections of a flower cart. it wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t the best either. it would have to do, she didn’t think she’d have the pull to convince him to make something better. “Kinda small.” she offered as an offhand comment before the MRE came flying at her. she snatched it with a bit of interested confusion. she was not military, but being a prisoner of the military-run company's science department, she had eaten the same foods. rations had never been presented to her this way but she had recognized it the moment she tasted it. her mother could really dress up rations for an eight year old to find at least eatable. she made a face, and that said it all. she at least pretended to eat them, for a second.

feel free to combine multiple prompts or add  “ + reverse ”  to switch roles !   for reference, the one sending in the prompt is the one committing the action.

Cloud had been with him through this whole ordeal, from the fires in Nibelheim, to the basement under the mansion, to the road out of there. Cloud had kept him sane, had given him the strength he had needed to get out of that basement and out into the world. Cloud was the reason he had made it this far. Certainly thoughts of Aerith had kept him afloat during his darkest times, and he thought of her constantly the closer they got to Midgar. But Cloud was the reason he had come here.

And now, Cloud was being lugged away by someone else. It was just…well. It was fine. It made sense, even. Zack just didn't much care for it.

He gathered his things, just a backpack stuffed full of random things they had needed on the road and, of course, Buster. It didn't take him long, but Aerith didn't seem keen on waiting much anyway. Basket slung over her arm (and he took a moment to wonder what had happened to the flower wagon), she led him outside, chatting amicably with passersby and handing out flowers. For free. So much for his plan to fill her pockets with cash.

The target, who had also reacted when she had seen his face.

There was nothing particularly remarkable about it, as far as he knew. It was handsome but uninteresting otherwise. He had a distinguishing scar on one cheek that would probably make him identifiable, when the Soldier's normal modus operandi involved going unseen, unknown. Like the ghost he was named for. He assumed that was why his face was covered, but maybe there was another reason.

But that didn't really matter. He had the target now, tied up and across his legs, complaining that she would be sick if he didn't move her. He ignored her and kept driving.

He didn't end up going too far, however; the sun was beginning to set as it had been late in the day already when he had finally seen the target alone. He could drive all night if he needed to, but the target needed to rest if she was going to be in good condition when he got back to the city. Besides, it was going to be more than one night before they got back.

They were far off the beaten path by now, and it wasn't hard to find a good spot to camp out. He parked the bike in the shelter of a steep cliff – not so great for identifying threats, but very convenient for hiding. He wasn't worried he'd been followed. The bodyguards didn't seem subtle, and they hadn't had vehicles.

He lifted the target and set her on the ground next to the bike, hands surprisingly gentle as he moved her. He then began setting up a tent for her to sleep in, out of the elements. Easier to guard, too. Darkness was already starting to fall over the hills, but that wouldn't make a difference. He had night vision goggles if he needed them, but his senses were sharper than most people's anyway.

His eyes glowed like blue fireflies in the settling dark, lighting up his face ever so slightly. Tent now erected, he turned toward the girl.

The Soldier backed her into the woods, until he was out of sight of the swordsman. He knew the man would likely come after him once he was fully out of sight, so he had to work quickly. He lowered the gun once they got to his bike, sliding it into its holster, where he could draw it again just as easily. Then he got to work, quickly tying her wrists behind her and her ankles together with a thick cord he had waiting for him.

This was when the swordsman made his next attack, lightning energy arcing through the air and connecting with the Soldier's metal arm, where he slotted his own materia. His materia, which gave him elemental resistances, thanks to the target's propensity for magic. The cloth hiding his metallic arm was ripped away, though, revealing the cybernetic arm beneath.

No one had told him about the bodyguard, but that didn't matter. He cast his own magic, a high level fire spell, and then got out his gun again, firing off a few warning shots at the swordsman.

He was almost taken off guard by the second assailant -- almost. She was on him before he'd had a chance to realize that the electric attack was a ploy to get the martial artist close to him. She punched him in the face, but he deflected so that she hit the mask instead, and her fist tore it right off of him, leaving him bare faced and still silent. He leveled the gun at her, but she was staring at him, at the telling scar on his left cheek, and she didn't attack again.

“Ah – fine, fine, all right,” he conceded, holding his hands up in defeat. “Just – be careful with him, okay? I mean, he's sturdier than he looks, but he's still – ”

Still what? Zack didn't know exactly what he wanted to say here. Cloud had been his only constant companion for the past five years. He would have died for Cloud in a heartbeat, if it had come down to that. Almost had. And yet, how could he say Cloud had been his only friend when neither Kunsel nor Aerith had given up on him?

“He feels so...fragile still,” Zack finally concluded. “He's my little buddy, right? Not used to him being out of my sight, you know? So...I trust you, but just be careful with him.”

Cloud had finished his burrito at this point and was perhaps looking a bit better in color, maybe? Might have been Zack imagining it, he supposed. Zack was tempted to give Cloud his own burrito too, because he still looked hungry, but Zack really needed something to eat too. Besides, they were going to a place where there was potentially food.

He got out his burrito and made quick work of it, swallowing it down in three bites. It felt good to have something in his stomach. Then he zipped up his hoodie again to hide the bullet holes in his shirt and pulled the hood up over his hair. There wasn't anything he could do to hide Buster, but that was just the way things were.

Kunsel was already pulling Cloud to his feet by the time Zack was finishing his burrito, and Cloud let out a little noise and made a reaching motion over to Zack. That...was a lot, actually. Zack smiled warmly at him.

@churchflower && @meteorshcts

"They still are, from what I've heard - but they're not as willing to cause a noticeable fuss after the losses taken in the outskirts. Pair that with you being in Midgar where there's a chance that someone might recognize you, even if it's been a few years, and that can bring up questions Shinra won't want to answer… it's no guarantee that they're off your trail, just that we might have some breathing room, at least for now."

As Aerith takes her hands and pulls on his burrito holding arm to get his attention, Kunsel tilts his head towards her, a frown of agreement on his expression, missing the confused look Zack threw in their direction but not the way he started talking before yelping and laughing in exasperation - his head immediately snapping to the scene again only to see Zack pry his fingers away from Cloud's mouth.

"Let Cloud finish eating, then we go - it's a good sign he's moving around and trying to eat, even if he's trying to resort to cannibalism, considering he was basically catatonic earlier." Kunsel tries to lighten the mood, a quiet chuckle escaping him as he takes in the situation. It really didn't feel real to have Zack here… and they had so much to tell him.

But that could be saved for later, when they've all cleaned up and collected their thoughts. And speaking of Zack, Kunsel wasn't keen on letting him exert himself too much.

"As for Cloud, yeah, I can carry him - and before you say anything: Zack you need a break. You've been dragging him along for months now, and I've literally just healed you and spent a revive on you - not letting you exert yourself unless strictly necessary." And he makes sure to catch Zack's gaze here, to show he's serious and will make a fuss about it… and a vague nostalgia flutters over Kunsel's expression, softening just a bit.

It's been a while since he's been on Zack's case over his own well being, huh?

So why had he been sent?

The mask did prevent speaking, but he made no move to discard it. Instead, he gestured with the gun – hands up further, and turn around. Once she complied, he systematically removed her weapons: the guard stick from her back and each one of her materia from her wrist armor. He kept the gun pointed at her and tossed the weapons out of her reach. Easy.

He paused. There was a sound – someone coming. He turned around just in time to see a blond man with a large broadsword running toward him and calling out the target's name. The Soldier spared a few shots for him, which were predictably deflected by the large blade, and then got out his own broadsword. That was fine by him; he was best with the sword.

The two blades clashed together, and the Soldier soon learned that the swordsman was not someone to take lightly. His technique was sloppy, and he relied too much on brute strength, but he had that strength in spades. He knew the heft of his weapon very well, and he wasn't afraid to use the slotted materia to his advantage.

The Soldier didn't have time for this. Even now, his target was attempting to gather her weapons. He dodged under the large blade and swept a leg beneath the swordsman, knocking him off his feet. Then he fired a few more bullets at the swordsman and began running after the target. He managed to grab her roughly from behind, sliding an arm around her chest and jerking her backwards so her head was against his chest. He turned so he was facing the swordsman and pressed the nozzle of the gun against her head.

The swordsman stopped, predictably. The Soldier led the target backwards, toward where he had stashed his motorbike in the trees.

“Aerith!” the swordsman called. “Damn it! Who are you?! Are you with Shinra?!”

but what was she without her bodyguard?

her eyes lit up a certain way when Cloud came barging to her rescue. clashing swords were her queue to get her things. she shuffled through the grass to pick up a bangle, and a second before she felt him scruff her like a cat. she let out a fluster squeak, her tools leaving startled hands and clattering to the ground again. his grip around her waist was strong there was no way someone her strength and size to fight her way out. especially with a gun held to her head.

she hated to see Cloud’s guard drop like that, just because of her. it was foreboding.

“It’s okay!” she made another weak noise of struggle. They came for her last time when ShinRa took her… she had to trust they would find a way to get her back. trust they would even bother looking for her again. this would put them back on an already weak schedule. “I’m okay!” for now, but not while she was being used as bait. he wanted her alive or he would have killed her already and that had been the order.